Being Mrs Dantata

02

Zayd couldn't understand why the woman in front of him caused flutters in his chest; only a few people did that and before then, she wasn't one of them. He also couldn't understand why he took note of even the littlest things; the way she sat, the way she smiled, and the emotions that were clearly written on her face.

He had no doubt she was stood up and once again he wished those who stood her up had bad days. So far, she was one of the nicest souls he had come across and although he hesitated at first, he was glad his wife – Amal – pushed him towards her.

He let his curiosity lead the way, acting as though he had no idea why she was sitting alone. "Are you expecting anyone? Most people who come alone sit by the wall. You have a table for four people."

The pain Hanan felt earlier returned and her smile dimmed. She nodded slowly, bringing her line of sight down to her hands which sat on her laps. "I was expecting a few friends." She sighed and raised her head to look at him again. The smile that returned to her face was tight. "They're not coming though. It's just me now."

Zayd's chest was a little constricted. "Something came up?"

She shook her head. "Not really..." She momentarily hesitated and wondered if it was okay to share the details. With a small exhale, she decided to just not think too much about it. "They don't want to be around me. Apparently, I was the only one who valued the friendship. To them I was someone to while away time. Now that we're all in different places, it's easy to cut me off and throw my friendship back in my face."

His chest squeezed, his heart going out to her. Once again, he wished her so called friends had a very bad day. "I'm sorry."

She gave him another small smile that radiated nothing but warmth. "It's not your fault so you don't have to apologize...They probably wanted some comic relief or someone to keep them busy throughout the twenty-one days we spent together."

He was confused. "Twenty-one days?"

She nodded. "Yeah, we spent twenty-one days together. I told you I've been in Abuja for about three weeks. We've been in camp ever since. The camp in Kubwa, I mean. We got out today."

It took a moment for it to make sense and his eyes widened. "You're serving?!"

She didn't mean to laugh but she couldn't help it. She nodded. "Yes, I am. Why are you so surprised?"

Zayd leaned back in his seat, still surprised. His eyes were no longer so wide. "I would never have guessed. You don't look like one."

Hanan was clearly amused. "Do corp members have a specific look?"

Zayd did his best to not think much of her laugh and how it made him feel warm inside. He kept his mind on the conversation they were having. "No, they don't have a specific look. From what I've seen and from what I know, when corp members leave camp, they like to parade around town in their khaki."

"Even haughty Abuja people?"

She made him more curious the longer they spoke. He raised a brow. "Haughty Abuja people?"

She chuckled, shaking her head. "I hope that didn't come out offensive. It's just that a lot of people in camp were quite proud and arrogant and they had this obsession with appearances. A lot of them said they didn't see themselves wearing the khaki outside camp unless it's necessary so...That's why I asked if even the haughty Abuja people parade around town in their khaki."

Zayd could only stare at her for a long moment, amazed. "You're not from here, are you?"

Her cheeks heated, darkening ever so slightly. "Is it that obvious?"